IED FORESTR 




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APPLIED FORESTRY 






APPLIED FORESTRY 



WRITTEN PARTICULARLY FOR OWNERS 
AND MANAGERS; EXPLAINING CERTAIN 
METHODS OF FORESTERS TOWARD 
CONSERVING PROPERTY VALUES AND 
PROVIDING MAXIMUM RETURNS FROM 
CURRENT OPERATIONS 






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1 



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APPLETON & SEWALL CO.. INC. 
FORESTERS AND SURVEYORS, 
156 FIFTH AVENUE. NEW YORK 




Copyright n;i2 

By James W. Sewall 

Old Town, Maine 



CCI.A3J2880 



APPLIED FORESTRY 



The need of 

definite 

knowledge 



HiX^TiL much is a tract of forest worth? You can buy 
rf^or so much. But is it worth more or less than 
that? You can sell it for so much. But are you get- 
ting what it is really worth or will the buyer lose money on it? 
You can make it produce a certain amount of lumber. But 
could it be producing more, or are your operations depleting 
your principal without your knowledge? 

The admitted fact that no owner of a forest can do more 
than make a guess as to the actual value of his property, unless 
its value is determined by scientific measurements, suggests 
the wide scope for the application of modern methods in the 
efficient management of forest properties. 

An ignorance of basic worth at once betrays an ignorance 
as to the proper methods of conservation. The best of inten- 
tions, unwisely directed, may be doing more to lessen the 
value of property than careless waste for the sake of present 
profits. When scientifically taken, profits can often be 
greatly increased without harming the remaining values. In 
fact, as in all scientific management, scientific forestry works 
for the maximum returns for both present and future by avoiding 
needless waste and destruction and by making more intensive 
use of the present crop. 

It is because of the deplorable ignorance of actual values, 
and of proper methods of protecting future values, that there 
has, within recent years, gone up a great cry as to the need 
of forest conservation. 

So wasteful have been the methods, even under supposedly Wasteful 
well regulated management, and so flagrant have been the methods 
abuses under the heedless management of those caring only 
for present profits, that a real danger has threatened the natural 
woodland resources of this country. The doleful picture of a 
country with a depleted and inadequate supply of wood mate- 
rial, held up before the eyes of the public to arouse sentiment 
against the fearful wastes going on in forest operations, is no 




Eight-year old burnt land ; the soil was cleaned off. 



idle fancy. It needs only the application of figures to project 
the ratio of depletion into the future with a certainty of showing 
what a few generations or even a few decades would do toward 
the serious impairment of the practical supply. 

What is true on a large scale as to the mismanagement of 
forest properties, is manifestly true on the smaller scale since 
the large is but the aggregate of the small. 

In the matter of forest preservation America is far behind 
European nations in the adoption of sound policies. Even 
some of the Asiatic nations have exerted and are now exerting 
much labor in enhancing or at least up-keeping forest values, 
by methods which we in this country are only beginning to 
appreciate. 

The forests of America are ample for our lumber demands 
—tremendous as they are — if the cutting is carried on with a 
proper regard for future growth. But it is a well known and 
admitted fact that the cut of many of our more valuable and sought 
after trees is greatly exceeding their growth. The certain 
rise in the values of such trees in the immediate future should 
of itself be sufficient to prevent owners from sacrificing for 
immediate profits trees that if allowed to grow would yield 
more later than the money possibly could if obtained now 
and invested in even the most profitable of enterprises. But 
it is non-appreciation of these facts rather than a willful 




Winter transportation. 



choosing of a short-sighted policy that affords the greatest 
danger to our resources for the future. 

The steps now being taken in Europe and Asia for the preser- A lesson 
vation and extension of the forests have not been so much due * rom abroad 
to wise foresight as to actual necessity. In certain parts of 
those countries a condition has been reached which has more 
than fulfilled the warnings of cautious men of previous genera- 
tions, and by methods of unscientific wood utilization even 
less wasteful than those which are being complained of in 
America today. It is the pressure of this situation, together 
with their more advanced and more intensified ideas of civiliza- 
tion, which have resulted in the efforts of the present and of 
the recent past to protect the forest properties of those coun- 
tries from further depletion. 

The principles of the efficient management of forest property Value of 
can never be fully appreciated by considering only a limited wide study 
area. It is only in the observation of the more conspicuous 
instances that one may understand the result of tendencies 
which otherwise might pass unnoticed. 

An owner who knows only his own forest operations, and 
those only by guess work and second-hand information from 
others who reach their conclusions by guess work, often lacks 
the perspective which enables him to see his own opportunities 
for conservation in their true light. 

It is for this reason that the study of forestry as a whole is 
a most important one either for the owner or for his advisers. 
The day has passed when guess work, either their own guess 



work or that of their lieutenants, can satisfy the demands of 
progressive business men. 

A brief outline of the principal ideas underlying forestry, 
and their application to efficient management of forest prop- 
erties, is of value in moulding one's opinions, and turning them 
in the direction of obtaining maximum returns. But the 
actual use of those ideas as applied to any particular piece of 
woodland will vary greatly, so that much practical experience is 
needed to enable one to make the most of them. 
Four classes There are, broadly speaking, four classes of people who are 

concerned concerned with forests: the land owning class; the operators, 
who cut the standing growth; the mill men, who transform that 
growth from raw material to finished products; and the con- 
sumer. These classes at times may be interwoven, — one man 
may belong to all classes, — but there are always found these 
main divisions. 
The land The land owner, unless interested in cutting operations also, 

owner i s chiefly concerned in his property from the standpoint of an 

investment. He de- 
sires to know, first 
of all, whether or 
not his money, in- 
vested in forest prop- 
erties, constitutes 
a safer, more profit- 
able, and more desir- 
able investment than 
if otherwise employ- 
ed. This can be de- 
termined not alone 
from the present re- 
turns from his in- 
vestment, but must 
take into considera- 
tion the future value 
of the property. If 
present returns are 
eating into the prin- 
cipal unawares, and 

Thrifty spruce growth. Land like this should be a t j ie property is los- 

source of perpetual income. Note the . . , , 

. , t - ine in actual value 

vigorous reproduction. "*& 




8 



so that a future sale would involve a depreciation which 
would swallow up present and intervening profits, then the 
investment value of his property is in question and must be 
given fundamental consideration. 

If it is determined that the property constitutes a profitable 
and satisfactory investment the next problem which the owner 
must consider is whether or not he is getting the most out of 
his investment. It may be that a given piece of property, 
while profitable as a forest, could be cleared, and used for agri- 
cultural or other purposes, and thus yield a greater profit. 
If so, the forest must go, if maximum returns from the investment 
are desired. 

Before a wise decision to clear a tract of forest and convert 
it into agricultural lands can be made, it is necessary to know 
whether the nature of the soil is such as will be most advan- 
tageous for field crops that could be handled at a profit in that 
locality, or whether it is such as might in time better support 
an artificially or naturally replanted forest. 

In some cases the investment of the capital necessary to Selling 
obtain maximum results in the long run is not possible to the forest 
present owner, and he must either sacrifice his forest, or hold P ro P ei 
it with the practical certainty of depreciation unless it is properly 
preserved. Under the pressure of lack of capital, a sale is 
sometimes made at a low figure, based on present conditions, 
while the opportunity of preservation and enhancing the value 
through wise management, being unknown, is not figured as 
an asset, and the owner loses heavily through lack of knowing 
what his property is really worth. If he knew its prospective 
value, as well as its present value, he could often sell at a premium 
what he otherwise would give away. 

In buying property, however, the conditions are reversed, and 
the buyer may easily make a false estimate of the prospective 
value of a forest, and so fail to realize on the property at the 
price he has paid for it. The buyer may also, through lack of 
knowledge, think a price is too high, and fail to take advantage 
of what, if he did but know it, would have proved a real oppor- 
tunity. 

The methods of arriving at forest values, prior to the advent 
of scientific methods of measuring, charting, surveying, tabu- 
lating, mapping, and figuring, were not such as to commend 
themselves to the good judgment of the modern business man 




A Southern party. We cover all sections of the American continent. 



who knows that exactness is often the difference between failure 
and success. 
Guessing Not so very long ago, and even yet in many instances, the 

at values value of forest property was appraised by sheer guess work, 
soee -pj ie cru j ser g 0es through the forest, notes a number of the 
trees, or sometimes even observes them from a mountain tree 
top, and after all his jottings and data are considered, in what 
must be a rather superficial manner compared with scientific 
methods, he judges value. In their particular locality, where 
they have had long continued opportunity of seeing lumber cut 
and what it will turn out, a surprising degree of accuracy is often 
shown by these cruisers. But the personal equation is always 
present, and while there are many instances where land has cut 
just about what the cruiser reckoned, there are also many 
instances where a great variation from the true valuation of 
the property has been found. Compared with the scientific 
methods of the forester the ordinary cruiser's work is refined 
guess work, sometimes accurate in its results, and sometimes 
wild to the point of absurdity. 

A better understanding of the difference between the two 
methods of determining values can be gained by simple com- 
parisons. There are men who can guess the weight of a person 
so closely that it tallies favorably with the scales in a majority 



of cases. But back of them are thousands of experiences for 
comparison, and immediate and actual knowledge as to 
how nearly correct their guesses are. It is all right for amuse- 
ment to guess at weights, but no one would think of buying 
meat or sugar that way. No butcher would buy his beef by 
even his own guess at the weight, and yet his experience in 
sizing up the weight of a piece of beef is often a matter of daily 
recurrence. 

The land owner must therefore deal with the question of The owner's 
obtaining a knowledge of forest values, and must base all his problem 
operations upon those determined values, in paying taxes, in 
buying, selling, improving, or converting the land. The degree 
of error in the original valuation cannot be made up by any 
amount of wise management, and must appear in the result. 
Sometimes, fortunately, the error is on the side of conservatism, 
and the owner profits more largely than he was led to expect. 
But sometimes the error is in the other direction, and what 
might have been a profitable move turns out an inexpedient one. 

In borrowing money on Timber-Bonds accurate estimates 
of the value of the property, based on actual measurements 
by competent men, are necessary to prevent mistakes on the 
part of the seller, underwriter, or investor. 

Whether operators are wasteful or conservative and econom- Policies of 
teal depends largely on their point of view. There are some operators 
operators whose policy it is to go over the land once and clean 
it up thoroughly, take all the profit there is in it, rather than 
to cut out a few selected trees and let the rest grow for future 
operations. 

Another class of operators, particularly those for large com- 
panies, are more inclined to look forward, and are more and 
more becoming saving agents for the forests. They realize that 
the\", as a class, are perhaps in a position to do more than almost 
anyone else for the conservation of our woodlands. Theirs is a 
work that calls for a high type of administrative ability and 
leadership, and it is only natural that such qualities should 
go hand in hand with a proper consideration of the future 
values of the property. There are many broad-minded oper- 
ators who, so far as their financial needs will allow, are carrying 
on a correct operation of lumbering, according to the best 
methods which the science of forestry can devise. 

Between these two extremes in the types of operators are 
many whose intentions are to conserve the property and get 




Moving camp in the North. It takes practical woodsmen to meet such 

conditions as these. 



Two kinds 
of mills 



The 

:onsumer's 

\ iewpoint 



the maximum profits out of their operations, and yet who fall 
short in both instances through lack of knowledge of what truly 
constitutes efficiency. 

Mill men are of two very distinct classes. One has a light 
investment of capital, and desires returns of a comparatively 
high profit, and is not dependent on a restricted territory for 
any great length of time. The other class has heavy investments 
of capital, and expects sure but lower profits, and is dependent 
on a restricted territory for a long term of years. 

The portable mill, jumping from place to place, and skinning 
the woods clean, is the best illustration of the first mentioned 
class. The enormously expensive pulp mill, with its network 
of water storage basins, sluices, heavy machinery, and other 
permanent features, is a type of the second class. 

While outside connections and influences sway the individuals 
of these two classes, it is generally conceded that the first named 
class is a forest destroyer, and must tend to be so by the financial 
exigencies of his means and calling. The other class has 
often a profitable opportunity to be a forest conservator, since 
he must consider the forest as much a part of his plant as his 
machinery, and whatever prolongs the value of the forests 
increases the value of his investment. 

The consumer is interested in the conservation of the forests 
both as a citizen of the nation, with a care for the future, and 
as a user of lumber and the products of the forest, since whatever 



is wasteful in lumber operations must eventually come out of 
him. The ideal of scientific forestry is to provide for the con- 
sumer the maximum of material for the minimum of expense, 
even while it provides a maximum of present and future 
profit for the land owner and forest operator. 

Lumbering is the actual instrument by which profits are 
derived from forest land, and it is upon the way this instrument 
is used, and with what foresight and economy and common 
sense, that the present and future value of forest lands depends. 

In the past lumbering has considered the forest as a single Forest 
crop to be harvested once for all, rather than as a continuous customs 
crop. Under the economic conditions which have prevailed 
that was, unquestionably, the most profitable method for the 
operators. Men work in the woods to make money, and so 
long as apparently unlimited resources are at hand few will 
stop to consider a remote and improbable future, when there 
is a keen need and opportunity for immediate profits. The 
working idea has been, as a rule, to get out all available timber 
as cheaply as possible, considering neither the larger trees 
carelessly left, the young growth harmed, nor the condition 
of the forest when the work is completed. Conditions have 
seemed to call for this, and in some places still do. But under 
many present circumstances it is both wrong and wasteful. 

Upon the idea of getting out lumber as cheaply as possible, First steps in 
as the only prime motive, there has gradually been grafted a conservation 
kindred idea of saving for a future cut. From economy in the 
mill has come economy in the woods. The first step has almost 
always been the enforcement of a specific diameter limit, below 
which no trees shall be taken, and that limit has saved many 
areas to forest land that otherwise would have been depleted. 

The head woodsman for a large land owning company pointed 
with pride to a distinctly marked line of growth which was 
visible from the lake. On one side of the line were the light 
tops of hard woods, on the other were black masses and clus- 
ters of spruce spotting the hardwood background. "That's the 
way with all our towns," said the woodsman. In that locality 
a specific diameter limit has been enforced for soft woods, with 
the penalty of increased stumpage price on undersized trees, 
and the result has been the careful sparing of young trees of 
the more valuable kind. 





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1 



Moving camp in the South. It requires experience to cope with the widely 
varied conditions we are called upon to meet. 

With the diameter limit idea came also the rules for economy 
in cutting: low stumps, small tops, sparing of the smaller 
individuals of valuable species when making bridges, skidways 
and camps; careful scaling, clean picking up on penalty ot 
payment for cut lumber left. Even without technical aid 
there has been this tendency among thoughtful owners and 
operators to develop and conserve the forests along lines in 
which scientific forestry effects its greatest results. 

Until a few years ago lumbering was almost the only large 
semi-engineering industry into which the services of specially 
trained and educated men had not been called. 
Science now Now, the application of science to lumbering is being worked 

entering ou t, and under systematic management the forest is being 
the woods cut w j tn trie l( \ e a f both continuing and improving the tree 
holdings operated upon. Specially trained men give exact 
advice on handling, and that advice is being followed with 
profit. The engineer is aiding the lumberman just as he aids 
the miner. Under his guidance an exact science of lumbering 
may be discerned as a future possibility. Such lumbering will 
get the greatest real profit from each piece of land. Land that 
is unfit for agriculture will be kept under timber, and the wood 
crops on such lands will be harvested at proper intervals and in 
the proper way. Land that is particularly fit for agriculture 
will be cleared and devoted to it, and in this way the country 
will approach maximum production, a condition which today 
is only a dream of the future. 



'4 



Forestry as a science is new in America, and like all new 
professions has proceeded from theory to practice, and mistakes 
have been made in the effort to fit the theory to the practice. Men 
with proper technical training, but without experience, have 
come in contact with practical woodsmen, and have been literally 
laughed out of the woods for recommendations which even a 
little experience would have prevented them from making. 
One young forester strongly objected to a main hauling road 
following the valley of a stream where there was much soft- 
wood growth. He advised shifting it to the ridge top. His 
technical education told him to save the young growth of the 
more valuable species, but common sense and experience were 
wanting or he would have known that it was not profitable 
to yard logs up hill, and that heights of land are not good places 
for main roads! 

In the efforts of such men to get their bearings, and modify Technical 
their theoretical training with the wisdom of practical experi- men mis " 
ence, much harm has been done by creating in the minds of 
practical men the idea that technical training hits wide of the 
mark. There has perhaps been more pleasure in circulating 
anecdotes to illustrate the mistakes of the newcomers than 
in telling how technical knowledge was able to teach old dogs 
new tricks. Human nature is not different in this respect 
than in all other departments of life where innovations of any 
kind are met with misunderstanding and consequent opposition. 
But science has triumphed too frequently over the prejudices 
of human nature to be retarded in its advance by a few mistakes 
and the misunderstanding of their import. 

Although forestry is as yet but a new profession in America, 
and the first generation of trained foresters is still young, these 
men are quickly absorbing the wisdom of experience and mixing 
it with their technical knowledge, and are demonstrating the 
definite commercial value of the science of the woods. 

The future of forestry as a profession is a matter of which In years 
no one can speak with assurance, and yet it is but reasonable to come 
to say that greater and greater reliance must continue to be 
placed on more scientific methods, and that efficient adminis- 
tration of forests must naturally take the place of guess work 
and rule of thumb methods, and that the present wasteful 
tendencies will eventually be turned to practical and scientific 
conservation. 



It is a far cry from the explorer of fifty years ago measuring 
his lumber visually from a mountain tree top to the trained 
man of the present day measuring individual trees with cali- 
pers. The change which has brought about this contrast in 
measuring forest values has brought many new standards and 
methods, and will continue to evolve towards the maximum 
of intelligent effort in forestry. 




Heavy Burn in Northern Forest. 



10 



OUR FORESTRY SERVICE EXPLAINED 



The owner of forest property, desiring to obtain definite A varied 
knowledge of his forest values, and to know if his operations service 
are in line with conservation both for himself and the nation, 
will wish to know something of the services he may be able to 
obtain from experienced foresters. 

The operator or the mill man will also desire to know how to 
arrive at an accurate knowledge of the forest values of a given 
territory. 

To such we offer our services as foresters. Our wide ex- 
perience in forestry work, together with the obviously logical 
methods of our procedure, will commend themselves to the 
judgment of men experienced in the broader aspects of busi- 
ness, appreciating the value of technical knowledge, but being 
obliged to depend upon others for its application. 

Our service is as varied as the needs of the problem to be 
considered, and but a general idea of these methods can be 
given, leaving it to the individual owner or operator to see what 
portion thereof can be applied with profit to his own business. 

The consideration of a typical case will serve to illustrate. 

There is a tract of wild land, about which little is known. A specimen 
t iii l- r cr of applied 

It was surveyed and the outer lines run forty or fifty years ago, 

and it has been cut on more or less ever since. An examination 

of it had been made by several local cruisers, and rough plans 

turned in. 

It is desired to know something definite about this property. 
There may be an offer from a prospective buyer, or the owners 
may desire to log it in such a manner that the lumber will last 
and bring in a continuous income. Parts of it may be burnt 
and it is desired to know how much. We may think the taxes 
are too high. Perhaps it is desired to borrow money on the 
timber value, and erect a mill to get the profit that has hitherto 
gone to others. Or a buyer may wish to know what he is 
getting, or what price to pay in order to receive proper interest 
on his capital. 

Such are some of the conditions which usually call for our 
services. After agreeing on general ideas, the procedure is as 
follows, according to the work necessary to be done: 



17 







Fording in the South. 

If the land requires surveying we first do that. Records and 
data of the original survey will be obtained, and the old indis- 
tinct lines plainly marked on the ground. Lost corners will be 
found or relocated, and properly set. Careful measurements 
will be made to ascertain the true acreage, and posts set or 
trees marked at intervals, usually every quarter mile or half 
mile, for future reference. Lines of sub-division, according to 
the wishes of the owner, will be run through the tract, blocking 
it up into small units of area, as for example the square mile. 
These lines also will be well and accuratelv made and marked. 




Wading in the North. 

iS 




No nails or rope in this raft. 

The instruments used in wood surveying are usually the Methods 
magnetic compass and the Gunter's chain. Transit lines are used in 
sometimes run, and the solar compass is sometimes employed, surveying 
but the element of cost must be considered, and the ordinary 
compass is recommended as being accurate enough for all 
-practical purposes. An error of one rod to a mile, 1:320, is 
considered allowable in forest surveys. The compass is the 
only instrument with which lines can be run in the woods at a 
reasonable rate. 

The usual method of marking lines is by well defined blazes 
on the trees which the line intersects, and of quarter-spot blazes 
on trees standing near the line. Posts set at the corners are 
surrounded with stones, when practicable, and witnessed by 
trees being blazed down about them. 

The posts are properly marked for the corner with the timber 
scribe or marking iron, and both posts and witness trees bear 
the date and the surveyor's mark. Where lines cross important 
roads and waters, the usual method is to plainly indicate them 
by witnessings or posts so that they may readily be picked up. 

A stadia attachment to the compass is a convenient chain 
supplement, avoiding the necessity of triangulation of inac- 
cessible distances, such as water or gorges. 

1 he cost of well made compass lines in ordinary country 
varies between $12 and $25 per mile. Such lines need not be 
renewed for a period of twenty to twenty-rive years. 



19 



As an adjunct to surveying, dependent on the desired degree 
of accuracy, and the desired results called for, instrumental 
traverses are made of the principal waters and roads on the 
tract. The transit, with stadia attachment, is the instrument 
most generally employed on this part of the work. The cost 
approximates $6 per mile. 
The After the necessary surveys are made, and in actual work, 

exploration while they are in progress, exploring parties gridiron the tract 
at stated intervals, usually from one-sixteenth to one-half mile 
apart. These parties keep exact records of all the natural and 
artificial features they meet with — roads, streams, heights 
of land, growth, conditions of growth, burns, bogs, etc. These 
are all located on their lines of travel. 

If a topographical plan of the tract is desired, and such a 
plan is usually to be recommended except in very flat country, 

aneroid barometers 
are carried by these 
explorers, and read 
at numerous inter- 
vals. From this baro- 
metric work eleva- 
tions of various points 
are obtained, and a 
rough contour system 
can be drawn. 

As the exploration 
party travels it also 
takes a record of the 
diameters and kinds 
of trees, by measur- 
ing with calipers those 
on specified areas. 
For instance, a strip 
66 feet wide is meas- 
ured right along the 
line of progress; or 
measured acres, halt- 
acres, or quarter-acres 
are taken at regular 

Spotted line in a Canadian forest. Note the intervals along the 

heavy, well-defined spots. party route. Where 





work 



timber is very valuable this method may be varied to an 
actual count of every tree. Usually in such latter instances the 
subdivisions are smaller than the square mile, the forty acre 
tract being perhaps the standard. As in any other expendi- 
ture for knowledge the degree of expense must vary with 
the value of the principal about which information is sought, 
and the higher the intrinsic value of that principal the 
more refined can be the methods of determining facts about it. 

These results are tabulated on specially prepared sheets. 
Calipering work is done in order to obtain a sample acre of tree 
facts for the tract or one of its subdivisions. 

There are many ways of doing this field work. One way which Methods 
has been found especially satisfactory in fairly dense growth is to of ' Ield 
measure the trees in quarter-acre circles, a radius of 59 feet. An 
assistant does the calipering, runs out the tape to check distance, 
and sometimes tallies 
the diameters called off. 
But each tract of land 
will call for certain 
methods, and no general 
rule can be laid down as 
to .what the best method 
may be. The method 
chosen is influenced, not 
only by the land itself, 
but by the results that 
are desired, the need of 
quick work, and other 
incidental things. But 
accurate measurements 
must be insisted upon in 
all methods used if the 
work is to be correct. 

The information ob- 
tained by the survey 
and the exploration 
usually covers the fol- 
lowing points: 

Tract lines are marked 
on the ground and The bark would not strip from this dry 

tract areas are known. cedar post. 




A heavy improvement cutting 



Record of interior details for mapping is had. 

Trees, the kind, diameter, and number per acre. 

The slope of the land. 

The rock and soil characteristics. 

The species reproducing. 

The quality and condition of the growth. 

The merchantable condition of the tree-crop. 

Logging chances and conditions. 

Any damage caused by fire or other extrinsic happenings. 

The data so obtained are tabulated on special forms. Tables 
are prepared showing the size in board feet or cords of the 
individual trees, and by applying these tables to the recorded 
acres, a sample acre of quantity in feet or cords is obtained. 
This sample acre multiplied by the whole number of forested 
acres under consideration will give the total amount of lumber 
on the tract, proper discounts being made for faults. 
A sample From the tabulation of the data the report is worked up. 

report An outline of an ordinary report follows. In actual practice 
of course this outline is modified by omission or increase of 
detail according to the nature of the tract, but this serves to 
show the basis for a usual procedure. 



REPORT 



Name of Tract. 



Forest area in acres. 

\\ aste area in acres. I. Water. 

2. Burn. 

3. Bog, etc. 



Total area. 



Total Estimates and Valuation. 



Species. 

Board feet or cords. Value per M or cord. Total Timber Value. 

$ $ 

Value per acre for timber $ 

Land value per acre, stripped of timber $ 



Total value per acre 
Value of tract $ 



THL TRACT 

(1) Owners, with fractions (if any) and addresses. 

(2) General location 

Reference to (a) topographical plan. 

(b) timber plan. 

(c) field notes of survey. 



(3) General topography 
and elevation. 



(a) Water systems. 

(1) Outlets. 

(2) Relation to each other. 

(3) Relation to present or pro- 
posed railroads. 

(b) Elevations; extremes and aver- 

ages. 

(c) Slopes; steepness, regularity, etc. 



(4) Geological features (a) rock. 

(b) sub soil. 

(c) soil. 



(a) Temperature; Yearly and monthly extremes 
and means. 

(5) Climate (1) Length of growing season. 

(b) Precipitation; Yearly and monthly means and 
influence on forest growth, stream flow, etc. 

(6) Transportation (a) Drivable waters. 

(b) Railways. 

(c) Roads. 

(d) Cable ways, flumes, tramways, etc. 

(7) Market (a) Mills: present location, kind, capacity and 

efficiency. 



THL FORL5T 

(1) The species (a) Names and characteristics. 

(b) Range and altitudinal limits. 

(c) Tolerance, moisture requirements, soil 

requirements. 

(d) General size, quality and thrift in 

different situations. 

(2) Forest Types (a) Percent of each species in each type- 

(b) Where found and characteristics. 

(1) Elevation, soil and moisture. 

(c) Relative predominance and value in the 

forest. 

(3) Present forest (a) Thrift. 

conditions, (b) Quality. 

(c) Tolerance. 

(d) Prediction of yield. 

(e) Argument for and against different sys- 

tems of management, such as clean 
cuttings, thinnings, plantings, etc. 

(f) Damage and its prevention. 

(4) Merchantable condition, (a) Size and for what used. 

(b) Quality. 

(5) Estimates, (a) Species. 

(b) Diameter or sizes taken. 

24 



(6) Lumbering, (a) Logs, pulp, etc. 

(b) Cost on landing. 

(c) Length and cost of drive or haul. 

(d) Present waste in lumbering and methods 

of elimination. 

(e) Suggested improvements in present cutting 

and transportation. 

(7) General operation or "working" plan. 

SUBDIVISION REPORTS 

Forest area. acres. 

Waste area (1) Water. 

(2) Burn. 

(3) Bo S> etc - 

Total area. acres. 

Estimates 
Species. Board feet or cords. 



Topography. (1) Valleys and heights. 

(2) Drivable streams or railways. 

Soils. (1) Forest and agricultural land. 

(2) Quality and types of soil. 

Growth. (1) Present types. 

(a) Occurrence. 

(b) Condition. 

(c) Damage. 

Lumbering. (1) Footing for horses. 

(2) Swamping and yarding conditions. 

(3) Length of haul. 

(4) Camp locations. 

(5) Avoidable waste. 

Details of working plan and definite recommendations. 
(1) When, how and where to operate. 



-5 



Would not such a report be valuable to you in the general 
handling of your lands, or in the buying, selling or borrowing of 
money thereon ? 

In scientific handling of forest properties it is possible to go 
still further. By analyzing carefully the different trees there 
may be determined the yield which may be cut from the forest 
at stated periods without depletion of principal. 

This knowledge is of especial value to land owners and to 
mills owning their own timber lands. For lack of this knowledge 
in the past many serious mistakes have been made and losses 
incurred. By cutting more frequently or more thoroughly than 
the increase would permit some lands have become seriously 
depleted without the owner's knowledge until it was too 

late to save them. 
One method of ar- 
riving at a knowl- 
edge of future 
yields, in a forest 
containing many 
ages of growth, is 
as follows: 

Sample acres are 
measured through- 
out the tract, and 
the trees within 
these acres meas- 
ured as in obtaining 
a present estimate. 
This work may 
be done in the same 
manner as in esti- 
mating, but smaller 
diameters will be 
taken into account 
than if the estimate 
is being made for 
present growth only. 
Even the seedlings 
will be counted on 
a few acres. A rec- 

Light mountain transit used for traverse work. ord Will also be 



7- .\X M^sSfe JSESP* 

- . >..*•> 4 '■' «i .;. - •. 



26 




Running levels to control barometric work. 



kept of what trees will probably die out through crowding 
and shading. 

As large a number of felled trees of different diameters as 
practicable are measured. If logging is going on this can be 
done in the works. Besides the diameter at breast height, the 
measurement of growth at breast height or on the stump is 
made by counting rings back for ten years more or less. Differ- 
ent types of trees are classified by height as well as diameter. 
This adds to the accuracy of the figures but is not always neces- 
sary. The best and cheapest way can be decided on the ground 
by the forester. 

The rate of height growth is also determined, and the volume 
of the trees at different ages is computed. This is often a long 
and somewhat expensive process, but for practical purposes it is 
possible to shorten it greatly by certain slurring methods which 
give the desired results for local areas. 

From the volume so obtained for trees of different diameters 
and growth between different ages, the future growth and yield 
can be predicted. 

The forest owner may fix the most profitable size at which 
to cut, and may know the yields of merchantable lumber at 
future dates after such cutting. He can definitely plan what 
his forest is going to be worth, as well as what it is worth, and 
can figure whether he will get good interest on his money if it 
is left invested in certain tracts of land. 



profitable 



Especially in estimating fire damage to young growth is this 
acquisition of data valuable, allowing future as well as present 
loss to be accounted for. 
When Planting is as yet impracticable in most wooded territories 

planting is j )Ut t j ie j a y j s f ast a pp roacn ing when it will become profit- 
able. Even today there are many areas that would pay to 
plant. On vast wastes left by fire and by devastating logging 
planting can be carried on with profit by the State or by cor- 
porations, especially where large mills expect a permanent 
supply of timber from given areas. Here and there are cases 
where individuals should artificially restock their holdings. 

In planting it is the work of the forester to know what 
species is best adapted to the soil, climate, and market. He 
knows how trees affect each other, and how soil, climate and 
species are inter-related. He will not plant a tree calling for 
rich soil in land that has poor soil. He will not plant a tree of a 
valuable species in mixture with one less valuable but stronger 

which will crowd 
out, over-shade 
and kill its 
better neighbor. 
He knows that 
preliminary stud- 
ies, even elabo- 
rate ones, are 
often the cheap- 
est in the end. 
It will pay the 
owner to be sure 
he is planting the 
correct species in 
the right way, 
and this cannot 
always be readily 
determined 
without careful 
examination. 

The manage- 
ment of lands is 
greatly simplified 
by applied fores- 

A spotted line through old growth. try. 1 he facts 




2>S 




Efficient management avoids this kind of waste. 



once definitely known afford a basis for all future decisions, and 
make unnecessary the continual consideration and reconsider- 
ation of the essentials involved. The owner or manager has at 
his command accurate plans showing growth and topography; 
a report giving present and perhaps future yields in timber; and 
definite plans for efficient handling. He also has complete sur- 
vey records by which his acreage is known, and on which he can 
execute definite deeds in case of partial or total sale. More- 
over, his land is marked to correspond with his records. 

Proper management, however, is an elastic term. It varies 
from year to year, and with each locality. What was proper 
management fifty years ago is not proper management today. 

But the manager who lives up to the name makes it his The efficient 
business to know all that is necessary to be known about his ' orest 
property. How he will get his knowledge will vary with dif- 
ferent men and conditions. On a small tract of land with 
limited business he may often obtain his knowledge at first 
hand. He will tramp through the woods himself, decide on 
his plans for cutting, do his own timber estimating, mapping 
and surveying. But this is possible only on a small tract 



manager 



29 



and with a manager who is not only capable of doing it, hut 
who has plenty of time at his disposal. 

In ordinary practice, especially in larger tracts of forest 
property, the manager is obliged to get his knowledge at second 
hand. The accuracy of that knowledge will largely determine 
the efficiency of his management, since no amount of wise 
management will rectify mistakes in the plans upon which 
operations are based. 

If the manager is one who works toward the higher standards 

of his calling he will desire accurate knowledge, and he will 

employ surveyors and explorers to define his boundaries, estimate 

When his timber, and recommend scientific ways of handling. He 

manage- will require them to provide him with intelligible and permanent 

ment records, which can be understood by other minds than his own. 

The records which are held in the heads of a few woodsmen will 

not be deemed sufficient. 
Granting that such knowl- 
edge is correct it loses 
much of its value by not 
being always accessible 
to the manager himself, 
as is possible only when 
records and reports 
are on paper. One of the 
great weaknesses of the 
older estimators and 
woodsmen is their lack 
of ability to put then- 
ideas on paper, so that 
the information con- 
tained therein will be 
available to other minds 
than their own. 

By intelligible records 
and reports a knowledge 
of property is preserved. 
When management 
changes the new mana- 
ger has already at hand 
the essential facts of 
Comer post. his business, and can 








An experiment in white pine planting 



intelligently and economically carry on the policies best suited 
to the case. 

If the manager has at his hand the requisite information 
regarding his tracts he can have a proper check on taxation, can 
treat intelligently and advantageously with prospective buyers, 
and can know what to count on in the way of timber estimates. 

Having the boundaries properly delineated on the ground, 
by plain and correctly measured lines, will prevent trespass, 
allow better mapping control, and furnish needed data when 
considering exact area. 

The efficient manager finds that there is an advantage in 
having the land cut up into as many subdivisions as is consistent 
with practical economy. Such subdivisions may be had by 
running regular spotted lines or by using natural features of 
division, such as heights of land. Square artificial divisions are 
generally recommended as being more definite and more evident 
on the ground to the logger. In making logging permits territory 
can be granted by watersheds within these divisions if desired. 
Subdivisions allow control of cutting, prevent waste in left 
timber, make inspection easier, and provide a basis for more 
intensive operations. Estimates are concentrated to easily 
checked quantities, and the employment of finer methods of 
mapping and selling are also made possible. 

Detailed estimates of timber on each subdivision, and definite 
informatory reports as to handling will also prove invaluable to the 



Value of 
subdivisions 



Cost of 

forestry 
service 



Forest 
maps 



manager. With these he can avoid over-valuation for taxation, 
can buy or sell with correct bargaining, and can place his logging 
contracts in the right locality and under right restrictions. 
He can also avoid leaving over-mature or diseased timber to 
become total losses. At every point increased knowledge adds 
to the profit and increases the efficiency of operations. There 
is never a premium on not knowing the exact conditions with 
which one has to deal. 

The cost of obtaining definite knowledge, based on adequate 
field work, varies in price from 4 cents to 20 cents per acre, 
according to the fineness of the work, number of subdivisions, 
speed in carrying out contracts, accessibility of tract, size of 
area, character of topography, character of timber, etc. This 
means from }4% to 3% °f tne value of ordinary woodland. 
Considering that the work once done will furnish accurate 
information for a lifetime it will be seen that the cost is com- 
paratively small. 

As a record of this work the manager or owner will have 
before him maps of his property, showing boundary lines and 

interior division 
lines, lakes, impor- 
tant streams, roads, 
burnt areas, bogs, 
and clearings, with 
camps, dams and 
other definite feat- 
ures accurately de- 
lineated; barometric 
contour lines at the 
necessary interval to 
give topography; 
colored and de- 
scribed growth 
types. At a glance 
the manager can see 
his whole territory 
far better than by 
a casual examina- 
tion in the field 

Have you slow-growing, shallow-rooted areas like r t- K e nronertv 

this, which should not be thinned , 11. 

hut cut clean? itself. 





A Southern forest. One of our men estimated the timber on this tract. 



These plans and other records may be kept up-to-date, with 
little yearly expense, additions of information being made by 
the regular field force of the concern, so that the initial ex- 
pense of preparation is the only one necessary to consider. 
In this way the manager is able at any time to furnish himself 
or his directors with a birdseye view of the holdings and opera- 
tions, and is able to look for years in advance on the location 
and result of cuttings. Directors are able intelligently to 
apprehend what is being done, and the manager intelligently to 
explain it. 

Besides making surveys, estimates of timber, working plans, 
yield predictions and plantings, our services may be obtained 
for inspection of logging operations, planning of fire patrol 
systems, oversight and planning of logging railroad construction, 
and estimates of water power. Estates will also be managed 
for those who have not the desire nor the opportunity to act as 
their own agents. 

If the regulations of the land owner or the recommendations 
of the forester are to amount to anything logging operations inspections 
must be inspected. This work should be carried out at first 
by trained practical men, who will know what should be done, 
and compel it. A profitable system is to have a technical 
forester introduce systematic methods of procedure, and arrange 
the work so it can be carried on by cheaper men. 



Other 
forestry- 
services 



Necessary 



Protection Fire is the great natural enemy of the forest, and the best 

against insurance against it is the protection offered by patrolling or 

by establishment of fire stations. We plan this work, laying 

out necessary lines of communication, such as telephones, roads, 

or lines of protection, and overseeing their construction. 

We are also prepared to oversee the building of logging 
railways, making the surveys, and estimating the cost, making 
sure that the right of way becomes as much as possible a source 
of safety from fire rather than one of danger. 

Many tracts of woodland depend for their value on the 
presence of water power adequate to carry on a mill. We will 
give estimates of this power, and location for mills at proper 
points. We do not, however, construct the mills, but leave that 
to the engineer. 
Will it The question of applying or not applying scientific forestry 

pay- methods resolves itself into the question, "Will it pay?" The 
statement of cost per acre has been made. Now consider the 
cost per thousand feet board measure in ordinary lands. It 
will cost on an average about two cents per thousand to obtain 
definite, concise and permanent knowledge of the conditions 
underlying the operations. Stated this way the question an- 
swers itself. Few people could or would bring forth an argument 
to prove that definite knowledge is not worth that amount. 
The only remaining question is whether an owner or manager 
is sufficiently profit-loving to avail himself of knowledge which 
will prove of value far beyond the cost. 



34 




The end. 



APPLETON & 5LWALL COMPANY, INC. 

FORESTERS AND SURVEYORS 
156 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK 



INVITE CORRESPONDENCE FROM LAND OWNERS 
MANAGERS OF FOREST PROPERTIES 



AND 



MAY 20 1912 



GEORGE BATTEN COMPAN' 

ADVERTISING 
N EW YOR K 







i •■ ■ ■ 






